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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What "circuit" is Venus referring to when she tells Adonis "I have hemm’d thee here/ Within the circuit of this ivory pale" (lines 229-230)?

2. To whom is the poem dedicated?

3. Who or what is being described when the word "fetlocks" is used in line 295?

4. Which is the most reasonable interpretation of Venus's characterization of Adonis as having a "mermaid's voice" (line 429)?

5. What metaphorical comparison is introduced when the horse crushes the bit?

Short Essay Questions

1. What plan does Adonis share with Venus just as she is finally about to let him leave her, and how does Venus react?

2. How does the mare react to the stallion at first, and how does her reaction change?

3. Explain the comparison made between Adonis's mouth and a "red morn" (line 453).

4. How does Adonis eventually end up kissing Venus?

5. Explain the conceit that Venus uses when she compares herself to a park.

6. What point is Adonis making with the metaphor "Who plucks the bud before one leaf put forth?" (line 416)?

7. What happens when Adonis tries to get back on his horse and leave?

8. Describe the stanza form in Venus and Adonis.

9. As Adonis vacillates "’Twixt crimson shame and anger ashy pale" (line 76), what is the speaker saying Venus feels in lines 77 and 78, "Being red she loves him best, and being white, / Her best is better’d with a more delight"?

10. What is Venus's purpose in talking about her relationship with the god of war?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Venus's apostrophes to death are not the only apostrophes in the poem. Where else is this technique used in the poem? What impact do the apostrophes have on tone? How is the use of apostrophe related to the way that Helios, Mars, Diana, and other figures are referred to, as if they are nearby but not directly interacting with Venus or Adonis? Write an essay in which you make and defend a claim about the larger purpose of the poem's apostrophes. Support your arguments with both quoted and paraphrased evidence drawn from throughout the poem, and be sure to cite any quoted language in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

What does Venus and Adonis convey about lust and love? In the world of the poem, how do the two emotions relate to one another? Is there any difference between these two feelings? Does either lead to human happiness? What do love and lust look like in practice, and how do they impact the characters in the poem? How do the two feelings relate to morality? Write an essay in which you take and defend a position about the messages that Venus and Adonis conveys about love and lust. Support your analysis with evidence from the poem, citing any quoted material in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

In Western literature, red is traditionally associated with beauty, and white is traditionally associated with virtue. Shakespeare uses these colors and their traditional symbolic meanings in many of his works. Does he do so in Venus and Adonis? What statement is this poem making about virtue? Is it related to beauty in any way? Where do the colors red and white occur in the poem, and what does each seem to be associated with? Write an essay in which you take a position on whether the colors red and white represent beauty and virtue in Venus and Adonis. Support your assertions with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from the poem; cite any borrowed language in MLA format.

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